Kidnapped Heart
by Lycoris-47
Summary: Revised! Athrun Zala's mission was to kidnap Cagalli Yula Atha, the Princess of Orb. But what with Blue Cosmos, his crazy team, and the whole romance thing, it may prove harder than he had ever imagined! AxC, KxL, DxMxT, MxM
1. Chapter 1

The room was cold, and white. A few plants decorated the marble pedestals in the corners of the moderately sized room.

Athrun stood at parade attention, clutching over a thick hunk of blueprints-covered papers in his left hand. The papers hung at his side.

Athrun looked up from under hooded emerald eyes, hair falling into his eyes. The blue-haired boy glanced at the sheaf of diagrams in front of him. "So, I have to get into here?"

The masked man in front of him smirked slightly, long blond hair flopping over his silver mask. "Is there a problem?"

Athrun shook his head. "Of course not. It seems quite straightforward, really."

Internally, the masked-man smiled. _This is quite entertaining. He might not find it quite as straightforward as he believes. This will be an amusing mission for young Athrun. _"Do you require anyone as backup?"

Pondering for a few moments, Athrun shook his head in the negative. "No sir, I don't believe I will."

Le Creuset smiled slightly, an obviously false smile. "I admire your willingness. I will assign you a team never the less. Hmm…" He thought for a few moments before deciding. His mind was already made up, but it looked more dramatic to ponder carefully before speaking. "Yzak Joule, Nicol Amalfi and Dearka Elsman. There won't be any problems?" Even if the boy wasn't okay with it, that was the only team he was going to get. It didn't really matter what he thought, as long as he did what he was told.

Athrun clenched his hands beside him. "No problem sir, none at all." His mind growled at the thought of Yzak Joule. He was a jerk - plain and simple. Athrun and him had difficulties tolerating each other without coming to blows. It was probable that the commander had already known that before placing Yzak with Athrun - it was probably a test to see how well he could command a person he didn't like, and complete his mission.

"That is good to hear." Faint mocking lay in Le Creuset's voice.

Athrun snapped to attention, bearing the sheaf in his left hand as he saluted to the commander with his right in the half-moon salute used by ZAFT. "Excuse me sir."

Le Creuset nodded once, a faint smirk visible on his exposed lips. "Excused."

Athrun left, analyzing the mission at hand. He wandered into the lounge, noting that Nicol, Dearka, and Yzak were already there. That meant that he didn't have to go search for them - that was a relief.

Walking over to them, he looked at all of them, and spoke, voice firm. "We have a mission." His voice was low, only carrying to the three to whom he spoke.

Dearka punched his fist into the air. "Yes! Finally, we can get off this stinkin' ship!"

Yzak turned to him, and snarled. "Shut up, idiot. So, _Commander Zala_, where are we going?" Scorn was dripping off his every word, and his blue eyes blazed with hate and disdain. The platinum-haired youth's face was cut in half by a thick scar that ran from eyebrow level to under his cheekbone. It gave his face a particularly mean look.

"Earth. Orb, to be precise." Athrun looked over at Yzak, no emotion on his pale face.

"Is it a joyride?" Dearka's snide voice cut the tension. "I've heard Orb has some cuties." The tanned blond boy looked at Athrun, quirking a pale eyebrow as his purple eyes looked mischievous.

Athrun sighed. This was the difficulty in dealing with these two. Best friends, they argued and fought all the time, hiding the bond they shared. Both were stubborn as mules, and ready to fight at the drop of a hat. Or, they'd drop the hat by themselves, and fight anyways.

Nicol looked up, light green hair glimmering in the glow from the fluorescent bulbs hanging in the ceiling. His brown doe-like eyes barely spared a glance at the two arguing friends. "What's the mission?"

It wasn't surprising that Nicol had said the first intelligent thing in the group of four. He was the brainy one of those three, and a piano player in his spare time.

Speaking in his normal tone, he ignored the two arguing, and spoke to just Nicol. "We are going after a princess."

Nicol blinked, and then nodded in understanding. "A kidnapping? Why? Or, is that classified?"

Athrun nodded in response. "Afraid so. I don't even know; all I know is that we are supposed to get her." Sparing another glance at Dearka and Yzak, who looked to be wrapping up their argument, he looked back over at Nicol.

Nicol shrugged. "It could be worse - it could be an assassination. That'd be more painful."

"In some ways."

"Yeah, maybe she's a spitfire who won't take to being captured." Nicol chuckled lightly, elbowing Athrun.

A tiny smile softened the young coordinator's face. "Maybe." Little did he know.

Dearka's voice sliced in. "Is she cute?"

Athrun refrained from rolling his emerald eyes. The only thing that interested Dearka, other than fighting, was girls. He was hopeless though, and known for his bad timing and cheesy pickup lines.

"Is she cute?" he persisted.

Yzak roared at him, his temper fraying. "What does it matter! She'll be kidnapped, you idiot!"

Dearka shrugged, purple eyes glimmering. "Well, if she's cute, I can be the dashing pirate, or something like that."

"Pirates weren't romantic, dolt!" Yzak threw out at him, blue eyes blazing.

Athrun interjected before the two started fighting for real. "It doesn't matter-"

Dearka muttered. "It does to me." Yzak's eyes flared, cold icy blue.

"-Yzak's right, she's a mark."

Looking up at Athrun, Dearka sighed, smirking. "I think that's the first time Yzak's ever been right!"

Yzak snapped. He lunged for Dearka's throat. "I'll teach you!"

Glaring at the ceiling, Athrun bit his lip in annoyance. They were like little kids. Taking a deep breath, he barked out a sharp command. "Hey! Save it for later!"

They both looked up at him, hair mussed, and fists clenched.

"We go out at dawn tomorrow. Stealth attack. It'll be a quick in-and-out. Any questions?" Athrun held out the sheaf he still held in his hand. "These are the blueprints, and here is where we'll nab her." He continued outlining his plan to the slightly attentive duo, and an intensely listening Nicol.

"Who's the mark?" Dearka inquired - still thinking of the girl, of course.

Athrun answered quickly, trying to get back to the plan. "Princess of Orb - Cagalli Yula Atha."

* * *

><p><strong>My inner-Athrun came back, so I gotta change things. It would appear that on his trip, he gained a bit more maturity, and authenticity...Like, in one scene, Athrun <em>giggled.<em> This never ever ever ever happenes. This is an apocalyptic event! So, I re-wrote and touched up a few things...I'll post this version fairly quick, after all...I do have the ending -finally- written out. Athrun finally agreed to help me out...Finally.**

**Oh! I don't own him though, no no no! That would be to anger Cagalli something terrible...**


	2. AndI forgot the snazzy title for Ch1

The night was cool and crisp, silent and still. The drop had gone without hitch, and they had landed in Orb early in the morning.

Each member of the team wore a drop suit, and helmet that obscured their faces. The four snuck down side streets, moving towards the opulent home of the Princess. Athrun waved the others forward with a flick of the wrist after he checked around the corner.

They didn't have any civilian clothes on them - it would have to be quick. Dearka had whined and moaned about not having better clothes than these. After looking in a mirror, he had decided that these were acceptable after all. He thought they made him look buff.

After all this, no one had been able to dissuade him that the princess wouldn't be wowed by him in all his buff, pirate-ness. Yzak was disgusted with him, as per usual.

Nicol, unsurprisingly, was the only one without comment. It was a testament to his patience that he had no problem being teamed up with these insane coordinators.

They moved down the street, silently as only coordinators could move. The palace was getting closer, so they readied themselves.

Athrun ran through the plan in his mind - he was going for the princess, Nicol would hack security, while Dearka and Yzak would be ready to back him up if it went wrong. They'd be his only backup. He just hoped that they weren't needed. If all went well, he'd end up in one place, and the other team members would join him eventually.

All his equipment was in place. It was time.

Moving towards the small shack he would wait in until it was time to go, he looked over at the green-haired coordinator. Nicol had pulled out two computers, and was furiously typing on both keyboards at once. In the headset, Dearka and Yzak could be heard arguing, again.

He spoke to them on the helmet communication module. "Zip it, you two." 

Dearka's whine was evident. "He started it."

Yzak's roar was almost deafening in the helmet. "And I'll finish it, you twit!"

Counting to ten swiftly, Athrun snapped at the two. Maybe next time he should count to twenty. "Both of you, be quiet."

Dearka's snide comment burned through the comm. "Yes, Commander Zala." The scorn for his Commander was extremely evident. Athrun had no idea what was wrong with those two, other than the normal wrongness of Joule and Elsman. He thought it had been a mistake to give those guys to be under his command, and this just reinforced that idea.

Le Creuset had decided though, and you didn't go against what he said, if you wanted to stay in command.

Nicol signalled that he was ready. "We own video - I'm running a loop."

"Alright. Duel, Buster, stay on guard - watch carefully you two. I'm going in." Duel was the code name that Yzak had been assigned. Dearka was Buster. Justice was Athrun, and Blitz was Nicol. Their names were the same as the mobile suits they piloted. Why they were doing this mission was a mystery to Athrun.

Dearka threw a parting jab at him. "See you when you get home from school, honey. Be good now."

Athrun resisted the temptation of rolling his eyes, instead focusing the emerald orbs at the dark stone wall, noting handholds. Yzak's comment rolled through the helmet. "Shut up, Dearka!"

For once, Athrun agreed with Yzak's sentiment.

Nicol's quiet voice was the one he really listened to. "Good luck, Athrun. Meet you at the rendezvous." He would be watching the security camera, noting the response. If it started getting hot for Athrun, he'd send in Deark –mentally he corrected himself- Buster, and Duel.

Tensing his muscles, he leapt. In one swift second, he was beside the wall. In another heartbeat, he had swiftly climbed the wall, and flipped over the barbs at the top. Funny - for a peaceful nation, the Chief Representative's house sure had a lot of protection. Not that it mattered.

Keeping to the dark shadows, he moved swiftly, just under a sprint to the house. The tiny flowers he squished under his thin black shoes gave off an aromatic smell. A fountain pushed gallons of water towards the sky, falling with a loud splash into the marble pool underneath. It created a backdrop of noise for Athrun - he couldn't be heard by anyone.

He closed his eyes for a brief second, then opened them. He was in the right place. His mental blueprints showed him that he was directly under the Princess's window. Hers was the third floor up.

A slight smirk was all that showed on his face. He stuck his fingers into the cracks in the stone wall, and started up. It was easy - the stones provided plenty of grips, and it was fast going.

Arriving by the third story window, he peered in, then stood on the ledge. With a swift flick of the wrist, his curved knife was out of his boot. Another flick, and it was fully extended, moonlight glimmering on the shiny blade.

He eased the tip into the latch area, and sliced it open. As he opened the window, it was apparent that they had been well-oiled. They didn't squeak at all. Hopping into the room in the next second, he heard a soft snore from the single bed in the room.

He shut the window carefully behind him, making sure they didn't slam shut. That would call the security guards by the hundreds. A tiny bit of remorse overtook him as he gazed at the girl lying innocently in the bed. He shook it away - he was a soldier of ZAFT, and that meant following orders, even if he didn't agree with them. Putting the knife back in his boot, he approached the bed with a cat-like stride.

A slender girl lay in the bed, oblivious to the world. In a way, he envied her. His eyes hardened.

With a quick blow to the sleeping girl's temple, he checked her pulse, and rolled an eyelid up. The dark eye rolled, unfocussed. A steady throb in her wrist proved that she was okay, just knocked out. This was the part of the plan he had such a problem with - how was it okay to just knock her out? She hadn't even done anything - she wasn't even awake!

Orders were orders though. If he hadn't knocked her out, then she would have woken, and thrown the whole plan amuck. He could just imagine it: _"Sorry I woke you up, I'm kidnapping you, please come quietly, we might hurt you? If you don't come, you are killed?"_

Yeah, that wouldn't really fly very well. He picked up the surprisingly light girl, and slung her over his shoulder. Moving to the window, he opened it carefully, and started out.

It was mildly more difficult to keep the girl on his shoulder as he climbed down. He compensated by only climbing with one hand, the other on the girl's back. Still, it didn't take too long to climb down, and no one saw him. She moaned against his back. For a second, he paused in crossing the yard. Had someone heard the moan?

No guards came running with guns, so apparently no one had. He checked the girl swiftly - she was still unconscious.

"I have the mark," he said quietly, speaking softly into his helmet mike.

"Bravo, oh brilliant leader," Dearka sneered, his voice completely drowned out by Yzak's yell.

"Shut up, Dearka!"

Nicol didn't say anything; he hated trying to talk over others.

Athrun listened to Duel and Buster argue over nothing while he climbed the wall, lugging the ninety-five pound girl after him. It wasn't so difficult really - he'd done combat situations doing the same thing, but it seemed different this time. This was a real person who would hate him for taking her away.

Suddenly, he had the insane urge to take her back, place her back in her room, and leave. She would wake up with a bruise that couldn't really be explained, but none the worse for wear. Mentally, he slapped himself. He was a soldier of ZAFT, and ZAFT wanted this girl. His mission was clear. Get the girl. Mission accomplished. If he could make it to the rendezvous, that is.

He made it over the fence, and started down the street. Speaking into his helmet mike again, he told the others to start towards the rendezvous. Nicol would leave the loop running overnight - if he dropped it now, they would see that there was no princess in her room. This way, it might be a little bit until they noticed that the guards were repeating the same loop over and over.

No policemen came running to apprehend the soldier and girl. A few drunks staggered about the dark streets, but none approached him.

Walking along, he was watching the others around him. They eyeballed his helmet, and suit, the girl slung over his shoulder, and decided not to say anything.

He was distracted by a pull on his elbow - the one the girl wasn't on. Turning, he was confronted with a wisp of an old lady. Concern etched her face into dozens of wrinkles.

"Why are you carrying that young lady over your shoulder?"

A lie sprung to his lips. "My girlfriend drunk too much at the costume party we were at."

She smiled, placated. Until she looked at what they were wearing. Him in his ZAFT uniform, and her in a nightgown. Hastily he continued talking, hoping his nervousness didn't show. Lying wasn't his strong suit - Dearka was way better at it than him. "I was a ZAFT soldier, and she was Sleeping Beauty." With a chuckle, he stated to the old lady, "Looks like she fulfilled her costume too well."

A wrinkly smile graced the old crone's withered face. "Next time you should wake her with true love's first kiss."

His face went scarlet in the helmet. Keeping up the boyfriend facade, he managed a weak chuckle. "I'll keep it in mind."

Walking away down the street, he darted down an alley. Striding briskly down the dank street, he perused the area around him for enemies or tails. No one was in the immediate vicinity, so he meandered to the rendezvous.

The rendezvous was a dangerously old house on the edges of the city. Weeds inhabited the ground, and unpainted fence surrounded the tattered lawn. A few dark, large trees covered the area, crowding out the grass slowly.

Nicol was the only one in the rickety house at the moment. Athrun walked in, carrying the girl over his shoulder. She was still unconscious, so he placed her in the small room to the back. Once he left the room, he padlocked the door to the room, joining Nicol in the front room.

"I see you got her - good job."

"Thanks." Athrun's green eyes glowed at Nicol. Nicol smiled back happily - he was a happy kid, and it showed in everything he did. Sometimes it was a wonder why he had joined the army in the first place.

Athrun glanced at the back room that imprisoned the innocent girl, and then looked back at Nicol. "How much longer until Dearka and Yzak show up?"

"Well, I'm here, but, sadly, Yzak'll never show - he's not smart enough." Dearka's deep voice meandered through the room.

"Shut _up_, Dearka!" Yzak yelled at the blond soldier.

"If that's all you know how to say, perhaps you should go back to school."

Athrun sighed. It never changed.

Yzak didn't deign Dearka a response, he just launched himself at the purple eyed youth smirking at him.

"Hey, hey, play nice now," Dearka snidely admonished the platinum haired boy who was trying to punch his face in.

Athrun sighed again, and held up his hands. "Guys, cut it out."

This time, it was Yzak who responded glibly. "Of course, most noble and bold leader."

Dearka snickered a bit as Athrun continued as if Yzak had never spoken.

"We completed the mission, so now we wait for our next instructions."

Yzak sighed impatiently. "I hate waiting more than I hate you, Dearka."

Dearka winced in mock hurt. "Oh, I'm wounded for life!" The blond coordinator clutched at his heart while closing his purple eyes, and twisting his face up.

Athrun cut in again. "Le Creuset will be giving us our instructions any minute. Nicol sent the transmission while you two were on the way here." He ignored the fact the duo had probably not heard a word he had just said.

A small chime from the computer made the green-haired coordinator look at the screen, and flick a few of the keys. "It says we are to meet at the mass driver tomorrow, use a shuttle to get to the moon, and go to ZAFT's lunar base. He'll let us know what to do from there."

Dearka interjected. "I want to see the girl. Is she in the back?"

Athrun nodded before realizing his mistake. The blond coordinator trotted to the back, and pulled at the lock. He turned to Athrun. "What's the password?"

Athrun shook his head. "No, Dearka." He turned to find something to eat, when Dearka's voice hit his ears.

"Please? I've heard she's cute - not that I prefer blondes, but I've heard she's okay."

Athrun frowned, and raised an eyebrow at Dearka. "Blonde? She's a brunette."

Dearka blinked, then started laughing. "You kidnapped a brunette? Oh, shit, we're screwed! The princess is a blonde." He turned to Nicol. "Call up a picture of Cagalli Yula Atha on that database." He smirked confidently at Athrun.

All three boys peered over Nicol's shoulder at the resulting images. A blonde girl, with stunning amber eyes starred in almost all the pictures. Athrun felt a lurch in his stomach - who had he knocked out if he hadn't kidnapped that girl?

He trotted to the door, ignoring Yzak's laughter, and punched in the password. This couldn't be happening, this couldn't be happening. Maybe it had been too dark to see, maybe the girl he had hit in the temple had been a blond after all.

Opening the door carefully, he walked in, followed by Dearka. The girl sat in the bed, awake and staring at them. Dearka flipped on the light, then whistled. She had stunning turquoise eyes, and rich red-brown hair, flipped up at the edges, and mussed with sleep. Athrun felt a deep pelt of remorse at the dark bruise already forming on her temple.

"Who are you guys? Where am I?" Her voice was nearing panic, but it was a nice voice.

Athrun was struck. He couldn't say anything. Dearka turned to the girl. "What's your name, hottie?"

"What? What is your problem?" The girl glared at Dearka, hands pulling her nightgown to the ground.

"Got a name?" He asked again.

She sighed, and huffed. "Miriallia. Who are you people, and why am I here?"

Dearka turned to Athrun, a pleading expression on his tanned face. A smirk was evident under the puppy-dog eyes though. "Can we keep it?"

**So….yeah, I posted it super-quick. Really, all I'm doing is editing. Man, I must have been a terrible writer last year. Yet again, Athrun was… **_**gasp**_**…laughing….at Dearka… This would never happen! At least not in the situation that was terribly written out. I re-read what I had written, and nearly cried. Oh well…At least I know Yzak won't be blowing bubbles or anything like that.**


	3. With no punctuation for Ch 2

Athrun blinked in disbelief - he was still shocked that he had gotten the wrong girl. Although, if he thought back, she had looked a little bit wrong. Ah well, too late now.

Miriallia snapped at Dearka, indignant. Well, she did have good reason to be huffy. "Keep 'it'! Hello, I'm a girl!"

Dearka looked over at her. "Yeah, I could see that." A smirk was defined on his face. "You know Justice, I can't believe that you were stupid enough to get the wrong girl." Athrun was relieved that Dearka hadn't called him by his real name - he had used his mobile suit name.

Miriallia jumped up from the floor. "Your name is Justice? What kind of lame name is tha- Oh. I get it. Code name, duh. And you!" She swirled to face Dearka, pointing one finger at him, with the other on her hip. "Wrong girl - who were you going for?" Her eyes widened. "Oh, you thought I was Princess Cagalli!"

She burst into peals of laughter, and just as suddenly started crying. Dearka and Athrun blinked, looking at each other in bewilderment. What was wrong with her? They both shrugged, and looked at the hysterical girl on the floor.

Still sobbing, she sank to her knees. "Of all the days to have a sleepover. Of course, I get kidnapped, and now I'm probably going to die, and I have an asshole as a jailor!" She was slightly hysterical at the moment, and didn't even notice Athrun and Dearka easing out of the room.

Yzak was waiting outside. "Didn't you look at any pictures before you nabbed the girl? You idiot, you didn't! I can't believe they made _you _commander! You screwed up the whole mission!"

Athrun picked up the sheaf of pictures, looking at them. There was only pictures of the house, blueprints, and security systems. No pictures of the blond princess lived in the hunk of paper. "Maybe next time they'll actually give me a picture of who I'm going after," he commented mildly.

Yzak had steam coming out his ears. "Next time? You honestly believe there is going to be a 'next time'? We're all dead, because of _your-_" He poked Athrun's chest sharply. "-mistake!"

Shrugging, Athrun looked over at the white-haired coordinator. "It wasn't my best idea, okay."

Dearka laughed. "You bet your ass that Le Creuset won't be happy about this!"

Nicol looked up at Athrun. "Couldn't we just go back now, and get the real girl?"

Athrun shook his head after Nicol finished speaking. "No, they'll know we are coming - I bet they have discovered the loop by now. Security'll be too tight."

Nicol nodded. "I bet you're right…"

A hard clunk came from the back room. All four coordinators turned to look at the back door. A scream echoed from behind the door. "Let me out of here, you jerk-faced, cowardly, freakish butt-wipes! I'm not even the right person - let me go!"

Dearka called towards the small room that doubled as a jail. "Relax, gorgeous. You aren't going anywhere right now."

Athrun felt like slapping him. With that comment, Dearka had made them seem like rapists, or something. He restrained himself, and told Dearka to stop antagonizing the girl.

Dearka frowned. "She's hot. At least you didn't kidnap an ugly girl."

"Who you calling ugly?" The shout echoed through the small living room where the four sat.

"Not you, gorgeous," Dearka shot back.

Athrun sighed, then moved towards the back room. "If you don't quiet down, I'll have no choice but to quiet you by any means necessary."

There was a small pause, then a hesitant question. "What's going to happen to me now?"

He answered as honestly as he felt he could. "You'll probably be released, but at the moment, you are a liability - you've seen us."

She laughed without humor. "Yeah, kind of dumb on your part, don't'cha think? But, I haven't seen your faces, just your shapes, and voices. You've been wearing helmets, smart one."

He chuckled in agreement. "Thank heavens for that. On the other hand, you're still a liability." Typing the password in, he disabled the lock, and hesitantly opened the door, watching for a surprise attack. Sure enough, she launched herself at him when he entered. Gripping her wrist, he turned her around, and pulled her hands together. Wrapping a thin rope around her wrists, he tied a knot, effectively stopping any attacks from that quarter. Her teal eyes glared at him with hatred, and the bruise on her temple was like a slap in the face.

He stuffed a gag in her mouth, making sure he used a clean cloth to shut her mouth, and then set her in the corner. She kicked at him, and in mid-air, his hand snapped up to grab her ankle. With a disapproving look, he tied her legs together at the ankles.

"If you continue in trouble-making, the only other alternative is to be killed." His voice was harsh, and it made the redhead look at him in shock. After a few seconds, she started glaring again. The flimsy nightgown contrasted greatly with the burning look.

Athrun noted that he'd have to get her something else to wear – he hadn't even thought about it. Then again, what did he expect her to be wearing? A combat suit while sleeping?

Turning away from her, he shut the door again, effectively locking it. Once outside the cell, his mental barriers dropped, and his shoulder drooped. This girl, she hated him because, well, let's face it. He had been extremely rude to her. Kidnapping, physical violence, and now, death threats. If their places were reversed, he'd hate his jailor as well.

Looking at the slight, green-haired coordinator, he sighed, then pulled off his red helmet. Absently, he noted that Dearka, Nicol and Yzak had already done so. "Please inform Commander Le Creuset of my mishap. Tell him we'll get the real princess two days from now."

Yzak snorted as Nicol nodded, his brown eyes widened in sympathy. "What lame-ass plan are we going to execute now? Run up and nab her in the market?" Nicol moved towards the computer, and started typing swiftly.

Athrun shook his head, wisps of blue hair falling in his face. "No, better than that."

Dearka offered up his suggestion, lavender eyes still occasionally flickering to the back room where the redhead, Miriallia, was being held. "We break into her bathroom, and then nab her?" A thump came from the back room, and they heard a muffled shout.

Athrun internally sighed again. "No."

Dearka laughed. "You're no fun, man. Miriallia likes my suggestion. Don't you, hot stuff?" A loud banging came from the wall, accompanied by muffled screams of anger and frustration. He snickered again.

"Dearka! Shut up, you idiot!" Yzak yelled, blue eyes glaring at Dearka.

"Hey, hey, that's 'Buster' to you, Duel." Dearka's smug grin nearly did Yzak in.

Nicol interjected. "Ath-Justice, Com-Leader says…well, he's upset. It says, 'Don't fail again.' I'd say that getting her is a big deal." Athrun could imagine the anger of the masked commander.

Nodding again, and sighing, Athrun lowered himself on to the filthy couch. He placed his head in his hands, hair falling over his eyes. Why hadn't the commander given him a picture of the mark? He should have checked what she looked like though - that blunder was all his.

He closed his eyes, only opening them when a heavy hand slapped his back. "We'll get her next time, Justice," Dearka said. "Or I'll kill you myself!"

Dryly, Athrun answered. "Thanks for the support, Buster."

Dearka just laughed, then spoke loudly. "Like what you hear, hot stuff?"

Yzak snapped, again. "Shut up, you idiot!"

"Hey, no one can deny that I have a sexy voice." A massive thump came from behind the cell wall, and continued on for a while. Everyone could tell she had an opposite reaction. A muffled word actually made it through the door and the gag.

Nicol looked up, brown eyes filled with confusion. "Did she just say 'Ew'?"

Dearka laughed. "Looks like your mouth-filling talents suck, Zala." The thumping behind the door stopped abruptly.

Athrun froze. The thumping had stopped. Had she heard his last name? Apparently, she had. Crap. The barb Dearka had thrown his way was nothing compared to what would happen if she figured out ZAFT had ordered the attack. Not to mention his father was Chairman. Ah well, too late now.

That meant that she wasn't going home until they had captured Cagalli, and proceeded to the rendezvous. He had hoped that they could let her go earlier, but there was no hope for it now.

He moved toward the front door. "I'll be back in a few hours - we need some civilian clothing."

Yzak lazed back in the only armchair. Dearka lay down on the couch. Nicol looked around the living room, and sighed. He turned, and walked over to the cell, and sat down beside the door. "I'll keep guard."

A slight snicker from Dearka was heard. "You do that."

Yzak growled. "Shut _up_!"

Athrun sighed, and closed the door. Starting towards the interior of the city, he saw a clothesline with a few articles of clothing swaying in the breeze. He darted up, stealing a pair of pants and a shirt. Ducking behind a house, he hid in between the tree and the house, and changed into his newly possessed clothes. They fit surprisingly well. He stuffed the ZAFT uniform into a tree, and moved towards the city.

Wandering down the streets, he looked over everything curiously. Throngs of people crowded colourful stands selling everything from ice cream to the latest technological gadget. Finding a clothing stand, he bought a shirt in Dearka's size. Moving to the next place, he bought another item of clothing, and continued thusly.

Eventually he had all the clothes he needed. Just as he turned around to go back to the dilapidated old house, he crashed into someone. Clothes went flying.

"Hey! Watch were you're going next time!" A blond girl snapped at him, one hand clenched into a fist.

"Sorry. Next time, I'll be out of your way so you can bump into other people, not me." Without saying another word, he got up and started collecting the clothing strewn all over the street before someone stole them.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noted her momentary blush. Sudden recognition blasted him. This was Cagalli. This was the mark - the girl he was supposed to capture. Awesome.

She got off the street, and started picking up clothes without a word. He decided to talk to her a bit to find out a bit of information. "Why were you running in the first place?"

"None of your business. Why do you want to know anyways?" Her hands clenched into fists again, and he smiled internally. She had a temper - it was cute. Wait, what?

"You crashed into me - you had to be going somewhere." The smooth tone of his voice didn't show any of the things he was thinking.

Her defences rose. "I was running for fun, okay? I don't really see how it would concern you anyways." He laughed a bit and she got annoyed. "Why are you laughing?"

"You. You're funny. What? You think that everyone is out to get you? Pretty paranoid way to live, don't you think?" In his view it was a good idea - what with his mission to capture her and all.

"I'm not paranoid - I'm sensible."

He nodded sagely. "Is that what you call it - by the way, I didn't catch a name."

Her amber eyes flashed. "By the way, I didn't give one. You didn't either." Her tone was accusatory.

He smiled slightly. "Alex. Alex Dino." Extending a hand to the blonde girl, he waited.

Sighing widely, she answered. "I'm Cagalli. Just Cagalli." She put her hand gingerly into his larger palm, and shook it cautiously.

"This is the part where you say 'it's been a pleasure meeting you' and I respond with a 'likewise.'"

Her eyes flashed dangerously - he found it amusing. Like there was anything she could actually do to hurt him - a coordinator. In a voice dipped in acid, she replied. "It's been a pleasure meeting you."

A smirk was definitely alive on his lips. "Likewise, Cagalli."

She turned, and marched off. He found himself watching her as she walked away, hands clenching and unclenching beside her hips. A laugh fell from his lips as he picked up the bag of clothing, this time with a bit of road embedded, and started back towards the place where they held one of her friends captive.

It was a fine way to meet her. He was appalled at himself - excited to kidnap her so he could talk with her more. This was disgusting. He was a soldier of ZAFT; he needed to pull himself together.

In a raggedly pulled together apperance, he walked back, thinking only of a certain blond-haired, umber eyed girl. The memory of her crashing into him replayed itself, and he laughed slightly. He had been right - she was a real spitfire.

**And another one, right away! Darn, when I'm trying to get away from Physics, Athrun is just right there! Hehehe. **

**Oh man, I read this Fic where the main pairing were like, "I love you, I love you," right away! They met each other, and next thing you know, clothes go poof, and bam! They love each other. This is not love! This is lust, you crazed authors! **


	4. Miriallia's Escape

Nicol's slender piano fingers typed swiftly on the small computer. Only looking at the computer screen, he spoke to the rooms only other occupant. "I hope this works, Justice." Nicol had easily adapted to calling him by a code name.

"Yeah, me too," he replied, looking at the room where the redhead was being held. Faint disgust marked his face – it wasn't right to keep a lady against her will. Signing up for ZAFT had said nothing about this kind of work.

Nicol stopped for a moment. "It bothers you, doesn't it? Not really knowing why you are keeping her here."

Athrun sighed. "Am I that easily read?"

Nicol shook his head earnestly, chunks of curly green hair falling in his eyes. He turned back to his computer, and the clicking resumed.

"How much longer until you finish?" Athrun's impatience was almost palpable. He forced himself to calm down. Snapping at Nicol wouldn't make it go any faster, and would just reinforce that he wasn't fit for command.

"Not much longer, Justice – I may be a coordinator, but I'm not amazing." Nicol smiled, the light of the computer putting a blue glow onto his pale face. It made his brown eyes appear green.

Athrun sat heavily on the rooms only sofa, inspecting the designs – they were almost indiscernible, covered in dirt and other, slightly less recognizable forms of garbage. He remained there, thinking through the plan as the click of keys echoed through the room.

Yzak and Dearka were out, browsing the market, and buying food. At least, that was what they were supposed to be doing. Knowing them, he'd guess they were actually just wandering around, and goofing off. He hoped they didn't do anything that would automatically peg them as coordinators, like doing back flips off buildings, or some other outlandish stunt. Or worse, if someone figured out they were ZAFT by the way they acted? Yes, Orb was neutral, but he wanted his team to be nondescript.

Shaking his blue-haired head, the green eyed youth closed his eyes briefly. If he listened carefully, he could just hear the redheaded girl in the other room. She was grumbling to herself, and moving around as much as she could. After a while, he had had Nicol untie her legs and hands, along with removing the gag. The room was escape proof, after all, and it wouldn't hurt to be sort of nice.

She'd screamed for a while, until Athrun went in there, knife opened and gleaming. Her turquoise eyes had popped open then narrowed. She had studied him as he tied her up again.

He hadn't done it because he wanted to reinforce that he was the bad guy – to her anyways. If she was bad, he'd show up again, and tie her up again. It was like the whole good-cop-bad-cop routine. Athrun felt like a smuck, being the bad guy. He wished that he didn't have to, but it fit his present mood.

Nicol broke his ponderings. "I'm done, Justice."

"Good. Send it."

Nicol smiled. "Already done. How long were you zoned out?"

Athrun defended himself, knowing how lame it was going to sound. He wasn't good with thinking on his feet when affronted about meaningless things. Dearka was the master of that. "I was thinking about…" Glancing around the tiny room swiftly, he tried to think of something to say.

Raising his hands, Nicol laughed softly, smiling at him. "Okay, okay, if you say so." His brown eyes became serious. "We have a meeting with their chief of security tomorrow at nine sharp."

"Good, good." Athrun nodded. "Just the three of you?"

Nicol nodded, his brown eyes sympathetic. "It's too bad that you couldn't come, Justice."

Shrugging his shoulders, he smiled at Nicol. It was half-hearted, but he did try to make it appear genuine. "It's better if I don't – she's already seen me."

Nicol scoffed. "What are the chances that she'll see every worker personally – I mean, she has to have better things to do than wander around."

Athrun shrugged again. "You never know." Unbidden, the memory of her crashing into him rose in his mind again. Her fiery temper and amber eyes had intrigued him. Mentally slapping himself, he tuned in to what his teammate was saying.

"…-stice? You okay?" Concerned brown eyes looked into his green ones.

Great. Now he was concerned that his leader was insane and crazed, listening to the voices in his head. _Just one voice_, he thought absently. Forcing himself to focus, he responded. "I'm fine. Recall Dearka and Yzak. Tell them what you've learned, and about the meeting tomorrow."

Nicol nodded swiftly. "Will do, Justice. Where are you going?"

Athrun replied as he ducked into the cramped entryway. "For a walk…" So quietly that Nicol hadn't a chance of hearing him, he finished his sentence. "…I think."

Before leaving, he picked up a handgun, sliding it into his pants' front pocket, along with an extra clip of ammunition. He didn't think he'd need it, but it didn't hurt to be careful. Besides, he was on a mission, and that meant - don't get into stupid trouble.

As he walked along a narrow, green road, he passed Yzak and Dearka headed back. "Are you running, _Commander Zala_?" Yzak's cruel tone cut into Athrun's mental ponderings.

Each coordinator was laden with a bag or two of foodstuffs that were much better than the pre-packaged stuff they had with them.

"Yes. I find it keeps one from getting fat. I'll be back in an hour." Turning from the duo, he broke into a trot. Vaguely, he could hear Yzak and Dearka talking to each other, snipping away. Raucous laughter disturbed the little house, fading as Athrun pulled away. He moved along the little path, getting closer to the city with every stride. After a few more minutes of observing the local laundry, he started walking.

A small café intrigued him, and his stomach rumbled. He stopped, and walked in, seating himself in a corner, where he could watch all who entered, and decide for himself whether they were foe, or just a casual passer-by. The host walked over, light blue eyes appraising. "What'll it be?"

He looked up to see a girl who looked remarkably like his ex-fiance, Lacus Clyne. Lacus – who was now an enemy of ZAFT. "I'm your waitress for today – what'll it be?"

"Just a water, please." He looked over the small, plastic menu, choosing a dish that looked quite appetizing. He placed the order when the girl came back, and then froze. Looking around the small café, he inspected each diner cautiously, yet stealthily. Someone was watching him – he could tell.

A blond man looked away when he caught Athrun staring at him. The man oozed guiltiness, looking away, and then glancing back every few seconds. He seemed distinctly unhappy, or angry. Athrun wondered what his problem was, before deciding that it was time to leave. Abuptly, he stood, and started walking away. The dark sunglasses he wore enabled him to pan the café for more unsavory types. None caught his eye, but the blond man stood up a second after Athrun, and made as if to grab his coat.

Laying a few dollars on the table, Athrun started to leave. The blond man sat back down, nursing his cup of - evidently cold - coffee. No steam swirled from the liquid, Athrun noted amusedly. Apparently, he had been here for a while. Waiting.

Athrun frowned as he considered. He couldn't have been waiting for Athrun – he himself hadn't known where he was going, and no one knew him here. Maybe he looked like easy prey. That must be it. It almost irked Athrun to know that he looked like easy prey – he was blending in too well.

He meandered down the street, turning into various kiosks, and stands, looking at the merchandise each offered. He didn't buy anything – he didn't have enough money to spare. At a kiosk that sold earthenware pots, he turned, facing the café. The blond man exited the restaurant, looking about. They locked eyes, and the blond man looked away – until Athrun turned his head away. Right after that, the man started towards him nonchalantly. Sighing, Athrun turned to a nearby dark alley.

He was tired of this game – time to end it. Turning into the alley, he waited. The blond man walked past, looking around the crowded street, searching for his slipped prey. Moving out of the alley slowly, Athrun followed the man at a distance. He bought a large, cheap hat from a vendor, sliding it on to hide his blue hair.

This was getting interesting – the hunter was now the hunted. Stalking lithely behind the man, Athrun pulled out his knife. The man in front of him paused. With a quick step forwards, he spoke in the man's ear. "Why were you following me?"

The man blinked, apparently stunned that he had been outfoxed. Athrun didn't relax, thinking that the man would probably bolt. He was right. The blond headed man took off like a rabbit, ducking into an alley that showed itself. Athrun rolled his green eyes, and padded after the man. He looked like he wasn't moving very fast, but in reality, he was almost jogging. The illusion of walking was an easy one to maintain. It was like a more relaxed version of speed-walking.

He turned into the alley, following the man at a cautious distance - only to pull up in surprise. The man was no longer in front of him. Instantly his body lowered into a fighting stance, knife out and extended. The faint light in the dark alley glinted off the shiny silver knife. He held it in front of his lean body, partially concealed by his civilian clothes. Methodically sweeping the walls and ground around him, he checked for any trace of the man he had been following. No one knew better than him the dangers of recklessly attacking - it was a good way to get people killed.

With a swift step he put himself out of the light behind him that made his shadow show on the wall. Blending with the dark at the edges of the alley, he advanced, knife still held low. At the end of the alley, he checked for people, and found another crowded street. A bit ahead, he saw the man, moving nonchalantly through the crowd, in the direction of a small door that appeared to lead to another store.

Athrun smiled tightly, watching the man enter the decorated shop. It appeared to be a fireworks shop. His green eyes scanned the filled streets, noticing that other people appeared to be watching him. It made sense, in a way. He had just appeared from an alley, silver knife in hand. Smiling at the people around him, he discretely tucked the knife away, and pulled his hat lower on his head.

After a few terse seconds, people looked away. He scanned the crowd, noting others watching him - until he looked directly at them. Once he looked at them, they looked away. It still couldn't cut the tension and hatred he was feeling, projected from those people.

With a final smile, he ducked into the ornate shop door, instantly stepping to the side. He didn't want his body outlined by the light outside. The place smelled like metal, and, surprisingly enough, gunpowder. A fast sweep of his eyes showed that the person he was after wasn't there. A corner of his mouth pulled up into a smirk. _Big surprise._

They had given him the slip - if he was a natural. It wasn't like it was all important. He was curious to know why they had followed him in the first place, but it wasn't that bad.

A sudden clunk behind him showed that the door had been barricaded. He turned to the door, falling into a crouch as he looked for the nearest bit of shelter. Outside, he could see the people who had radiated malevolence standing beside the door, watching the others. One held a flamethrower, aimed at Athrun. This was no coincidence. But, why did they want to lock him in a shop? What would that accomplish? He ducked into the nearest room as a rock was thrown through the window.

He turned slightly, looking out the door. The man with the flamethrower was pouring a steady stream of flame into the front room. Heat licked at Athrun's face, as tendrils of flame clung to the walls, and started to burn swiftly.

That didn't matter at the moment - he'd have to think it over once he got out of here. Time to assess his options of escape. Moving swiftly, watching for danger, he pulled out his gun from his pocket. Briefly checking to make sure it was loaded, he held it carefully, before doing a rolling jump to another safe point. No shots echoed, so he decided to proceed a little more swiftly. Easing along the wall, he got to the back door.

One swift push on the door showed it was locked. That way was blocked then. He turned and ran down the hall, ducking into an empty room to see if he could find a way out from there. The room he opened was full of containers. He sniffed carefully - that smell was obvious. His emerald orbs widened. That was gunpowder - the containers must be filled with the stuff. If someone decided to light it, the whole place would blow up.

Another room yielded the same results. His eyes narrowed. How many rooms of gunpowder was there? This seemed a bit like overkill - had he unwittingly wandered into the armoury of Orb, or something?

He got it just then. Fireworks - full of gunpowder. More than enough to blow him up if that was their intention. And who were they? Why did they want him dead? He pushed his mind back to escaping alive. Time enough to speculate later.

A few fast steps brought him to the ladder leading to the ceiling. He climbed up the ladder as quick as he could, hauling himself hand over hand. The rough wood filled his hands with splinters. He pushed open the ceiling panel, half expecting someone to stomp on it, and force him down. There was no pain on his hand, so he supposed that no one was up there. He paused. A slight creak from the panels could be heard. Freezing, he pulled his gun up, aiming at the spot he thought a person was at. Taking a small breath, he held it, and squeezed the trigger. A loud crack echoed in the attic, followed by a sharp cry, and a red liquid dripping through the hole his bullet had cut.

A few spatters of blood dappled the dark wood underneath. Athrun pushed open the hatch, and leapt down the ladder. Shots rang out, cutting the air with whines. Athrun waited a few more seconds, then jumped from the floor all the way up to the roof. One shot came close - the rest were off by a long way.

He tracked the owner of the shots, gun pointed unerringly at the center of the man's forehead. It was the man who had followed him - bleeding to death from where Athrun had shot him. He narrowed his blue eyes at Athrun, then spat his last words at him.

"All coordinators deserve to die!" With shaking fingers, he brought up his gun, fingers pushing into the trigger slot. With no hesitation, Athrun shot him in the head, and walked over to him.

A quick frisk revealed nothing, only a slip of blue paper. Athrun shrugged, pocketing the paper. Turning his attention to the wall, he examined it, and found it quite thin and soft - for a roof. A few shots should penetrate, and enable him to escape. He moved a few steps away, and fired the rest of the clip into the wall at two stress points. The wall creaked and groaned, seemingly near collapse. A small burst of heat hit his feet, rising in the attic. As he watched, a few stray wisps of smoke entered the attic, curling around him.

He kicked at the wall, all finesse gone. The wall screeched, before collapsing under another hard kick. The hole had nails, shingles and wood chunks hanging from it, but it was an escape route.

Before he moved onto the roof, he reloaded his gun. The dumbest thing he could do would be to have an empty gun. Gun reloaded, he moved onto the roof. Tension clawed at him. He had to move quickly, or he'd get blown up, but he also had no desire to get shot. One step to the edge of the roof, and a hard push-off meant he'd go flying - hopefully to the other roof. Taking a quick breath, he executed the move. Bullets cut at the air behind him - evidently they didn't know how fast a coordinator could move.

As he landed, more bullets chopped at the building he landed on, cutting shingles into little bits. Pieces of shingle shrapnel cut his cheeks, and his fingers were scraped as he clambered to the other roof. Another fast leap awarded him with more distance.

Behind him, the fireworks place lit up, wooden walls and bricks flying into the air. Glass speared the heavens, and chunks of wood fell like rocks to hit unsuspecting people. Athrun covered his head, and kept on running over the roofs. Hunks of plaster hit his back, and he could hear the fireworks exploding over his head. A few stray embers landed on his arm, and he brushed them off without slowing.

A few buildings later, he climbed off the roof, and down onto the street. No one was nearby - most likely they were all at the impromptu fireworks display a few blocks over. Shrieks echoed in the air, along with wood squeaking and rasping as the building collapsed.

Slowing to a quick walk, he took a few detours and moved towards the little wreck the coordinators were living in. He started brushing off the last bits of wreckage, and shook his head. Bits of grey ash and tiny slivers of wood fell to the ground.

Stepping inside, he took off his jacket. Nicol paused in his typing. "What happened to you?"

Athrun's answer was brusque. "Nothing."

Dearka laughed. "Were you the one who set off that impromptu fireworks display?"

Yzak laughed with him, a raucous laughter that was more mocking than amused. "Brilliant, _Commander Za-_."

Athrun cut him off, trying to make Yzak stop calling him by his name. "I'm Justice."

Dearka snickered. "Wait until Command hears this one."

Athrun sighed internally as he walked towards the washing stand. This was going to be difficult to live down.

The inside of the bathroom was disgusting, just like the rest of the house. The captive actually had the best room in the house. Splashing water on his face, he thought about Miriall-the captive. It was hard, thinking of her in terms of captive. It was necessary though - no sympathy could be awarded.

He eased off his shirt, washing his messy torso in the tepid water. Pulling his shirt back on, he grabbed a pair of pliers, and started pulling wood out of his fingers.

The other three bickered and argued. When they ate, Dearka flirted with the captive until she kicked at him. He caught her foot, and held it. She pulled it away, and glared at him, teal eyes narrowed in hate.

Dearka shut the door and locked it once she was done. Athrun continued eating his ration bar, chewing on the lump of flavourless paste, and washing it down with some lukewarm water.

I WANT A HR HR HR HR HR HR HR HR HR HR

As Dearka, Nicol and Yzak left for work, Athrun laid down in the couch. He wasn't running on much sleep - what with kidnapping the wrong person and all. A sudden though made him blink. If he had kidnapped Cagalli, would he feel better about it? Because she didn't have to sleep in a little room, with nothing she knew, and was teased by one of her captors? Would that make him feel better?

No. No it wouldn't, he realized. He wasn't really cut out for this kidnapping thing, not at all.

As his eyes closed, the blue haired coordinator slept restlessly, not noticing the teal eyed girl in the back.

She pulled on the door, carefully easing it open. No squeaks sounded, and she breathed in relief. Stepping into the main room, she started for the door. A slight sound made her freeze. The blue haired coordinator rolled over, and started snoring.

A bulge in his pocket showed her the location of his gun. She started towards it, then froze. Another gun was evident by the door. She moved over there, as fast as she dared. One quick glance at the boy on the couch showed he was still asleep. A sigh of relief was heaved - she didn't want to shoot him. She shoved the gun into her pocket.

She opened the door, not seeing Athrun's eyes snap open. He had been tracking her location with his ears. One soundless move brought him upright. Another lithe step had him right behind her.

He opened the door, and followed her. She was running down the street, extremely intent on escape. He ran after her, gaining with every stride. She couldn't know he was there - then she'd scream.

A slight smile graced his lips. This was more to his liking - hunter and hunted.

She looked behind her, and he ducked behind an available tree just in time. She started running again.

He followed her from a safe distance, watching her from behind trees and buildings. She turned into a street with no people. Time to make his move.

She realized her blunder, and turned around, coming face to face with him. Her breath caught in her throat, and she inhaled sharply, readying herself to scream.

His hand covered her mouth. "I don't want to hurt you, but if you persist, I'll knock you out."

She relaxed, and her chest started heaving. Fumbling fingers granted her access to her stolen gun. Whirling away from him, she pointed it in his direction. "Let me go!"

He glanced at her patronizingly. "I think not."

"Why? Why are you keeping me? I'm no good to you!"

He shrugged. "You've seen us now - I can't let you go."

Suddenly, his knife was in his hand. Green eyes met teal, and he was astonished by the anger in her face. It was suddenly evident that she would shoot him.

She started backing away, still brandishing the gun. "Let me go."

Shaking his head, he replied, "No. Don't make me kill you."

She halted for a second. That was all it took. Athrun lunged at her, doing a barrel roll on a diagonal path. Coming up beside her, he looked directly into the muzzle of her gun. She was faster than he had thought - and now he was going to die.

This was all realized within a half second. Her finger pulled the trigger, and Athrun looked into her teal eyes - eyes that were widening in shock.

"I guess you're out of bullets," he remarked, slapping the gun out of her hands. His knife was at her throat.

"Come on, let's go."

She cried all the way back, eyes closed as she stumbled along mindlessly. He ignored it, forcing himself to play the mean guy, again.

**And another one's up and out, again. Honestly.**

**You know the most annoying thing of all time, at least in my opinion, is when an anime character acts completely nuts, and insane. Not like you think. I mean, like Athrun going off all giggly and frilly, or Sasuke having a laugh attack. This doesn't happen! To me, this is the biggest pet peeve. Even if it is a high school fic, that doesn't mean the character's personality does a 180 degree change! Gah! Athrun is a slightly introverted, protective guy! Just because he isn't in the military doesn't mean he's going to act like Tamaki from OHSHC!**


	5. Hopefully this is 'Mistake'

Dearka looked at the huddled girl when he came back from his first day of work. "What'd you do to my girl?"

The first hints of life came back into her turquoise eyes. "Your girl! I'll show you who is not your girl!"

A quick step towards Dearka lent her enough space to swing her fist at his face. He sidestepped, and caught her against him when she faltered forwards. Grinning down at her, he kissed her.

Athrun saw her back tense, and then relax as she kissed him back. After a second though, she tensed again, and slapped him. Athrun's lips quirked into a tiny smile. Apparently, all she needed was someone to argue with, and Dearka was the master of that. Actually, Yzak was, but Dearka was better for making girls loathe him.

Dearka didn't let her go, he still held her waist. At least he stopped kissing her.

Miriallia growled at him. He chuckled, looking at the redhead in his arms. "You are adorable when you're mad, you know that?"

"What was that!" she sputtered, glaring at Dearka.

Yzak yawned. "Cut the crap, Dearka, and get a room."

Miriallia broke free of Dearka and stalked up to Yzak. She used her other hand this time. He wasn't expecting it at all, and reeled back, clutching the large red mark on his face with one hand. "You hit me!"

Blue eyes met teal, both simmering and ready to explode at one another. In a way, you had to admire her courage - there was no way an untrained natural would win against a trained ZAFT soldier, red jacket.

"Time to go back to your room, gorgeous." Dearka's voice slid in between them. She turned blazing eyes on him as well.

"How dare you kiss me! I'm a captive - not some hooker!" She spat the words at his unperturbed face.

"Keep on yelling at me like this and I'll have to kiss you again," Dearka threatened, staring down at the shorter redhead with amusement, and want in his purple eyes.

She glared at him, until Athrun caught her arm, leading her to the room, or, more accurately, cell she was in. He pushed her in - gently. After all, he didn't want to hurt her. Clicking the door locked behind her, he turned to Dearka. "What the hell Buster?"

Dearka shrugged. "Can't deny I'm one sexy piece of-"

Miriallia's voice cut through Dearka's yammering. "Hey, _Buster,_ that blue-haired freak is sexier than you! And he's ugly!"

Athrun felt a pink glow on his cheeks. Dearka got a mean look in his eyes as he reassessed Athrun. "What exactly did you two do while we were working?"

"You pig! Nothing!" Miriallia's voice cut through the locked door.

Athrun rolled his eyes. "She tried to escape - I brought her back."

Yzak laughed. "She was that close to escaping? Jeez, Justice, you're slipping."

Nicol spoke up for the first time. "I got you a job too, Justice."

Athrun looked over at Nicol. "Doing what? Who's going to watch her while we are at work?"

Dearka looked down. "I'll watch her."

Yzak laughed raucously. "Doing what?"

"What do exactly do you mean by that, you silver-headed freak!" All the coordinators sighed when they heard her strident voice blast through the house. Athrun moved towards the back room, intent on tying her up again.

Evidently she heard him. "Fine, I'll shut up, jerk."

He turned around, and came back to Nicol. "What type of job did you get for me?"

Nicol's pale face lighted up. "You're the new other gardener - they needed four, so we told them we had a friend that needed a job." Athrun nodded as Nicol continued. "When I made the profiles, I made one for you too - you told us you called yourself Alex Dino, right?"

"Yes, that's right." Instantly, he thought of the fiery blond. "It's a risk, but she probably won't remember me, right?"

Nicol nodded in agreement.

Athrun smiled a bit, thinking about Cagalli, and his new job. It couldn't be that hard, right?

Nicol moved over to his computer, opening it, and looking at the screen. "Command wants this wrapped up quick. They say that if we don't they'll send in another team. Oh, and we're supposed to 'do as we see fit with the captive - if necessary, killing is permitted'. At least, that's what it says."

Miriallia's squeak was very loud in the quiet room.

Athrun thought for a moment. "As long as she does as told, I don't see why that would be necessary. Hear that?" He called towards the obviously listening girl.

"Loud and clear, jerks, loud and clear." Her voice was angry sounding - then again, she sort of had a right to sound angry.

He nodded once, and said, "Good. Don't forget it."

Dearka leaned back in the filthy couch, inspecting his finger. "So…" His lavender eyes lit up. "Anyone want to go clubbing with me?"

Athrun rolled his eyes. "We're still on a mission, Buster - don't forget it."

Dearka spoke righteously. "Scoping out the locals is part of mingling."

Yzak snorted from his position on the couch. "If you say so. All you really want to do is check out the local females."

"Yeah - although that redhead is definitely hard to beat." Dearka shrugged into another shirt, and walked out the door.

Athrun followed him, intending to watch him. Pairs were encouraged when in enemy territory. Besides, he needed to get out of the claustrophobic little house.

Dearka grinned at him. "Had to get out, huh?"

Athrun laughed quietly, in complete agreement. A few minutes of staring at the houses while walking brought them to the actual streets of the city. It was still quite light - apparently, the sun didn't set here very early in the day.

He turned, breathing in the clean air. Dearka was ahead of him when he started looking around the streets. They were surprisingly empty - only a few people wandered the clean avenues. A girl wandered the stands in front of her.

His green eyes noted the group of five guys nonchalantly following her. They weren't clumped together, but they were definitely together, and following her. It was obvious to a trained soldier. Dearka was out of sight by this time – he must have ducked around a corner or some such thing.

Moving up behind one of the guys, he looked into the stall. The man looked over his shoulder, catching Athrun's eye. He ignored it, looking at one of his buddies.

The stand was a jewellery kiosk, and a few mirrors lent Athrun a backwards visual. He couldn't allow these people to hurt that girl - it would make up for him taking Miriallia. It made sense, in a twisted way.

The five guys grouped together, and surrounded the girl. One man grabbed her arms, and another grabbed her waist. Instantly, she kicked out, hitting one guy, but there was too many.

Athrun lunged, moving as fast as his coordinator enhanced self could. His fist smashed into an unsuspecting brute's face with a satisfying crunch of bone. Blood gushed from the crushed organ. The man dropped as Athrun continued his attack. One man was dropped with a kick. The thrill of battle filled him, making him feel indestructible. His fists smashed noses, elbows crashed into stomachs, knees met faces. Eventually, all the men were either lying on the ground bleeding, or stumbling away.

The girl moved towards him. "You're hurt!"

He waved her away. "I'm fine, really. Are you okay?"

Her hat covered her face, but he heard her voice change in tone. It sounded very familiar. A sudden urge to laugh consumed him. Cagalli was in front of him - he had just protected her from bad guys, and here she was, with the real bad guy. He frowned, that wasn't quite right. He wasn't the real bad guy - who knew why they wanted her? They might have hurt her, but he definitely wouldn't.

She pulled off her hat, and gasped a bit. "You!" Composing her face, she continued, in a more scathing tone. "Are you…okay?"

"I'm fine." A few drops of blood fell from his nose, dripping onto his shirt.

Her brown eyes gleamed. "Liar."

He chuckled. "Alright - you've got me there." He left out exactly what he was lying about, and smiled lightly at her. It was very nearly a real smile – not forced.

Tugging on his arm insistently, she said, "Come on, let's get that fixed up."

He tried to extricate his arm from her grasp, but she held on. "I'm fine, really." He echoed his earlier words.

"No, you aren't, come on! You're so stubborn, honestly. Are you like this all the time?"

He chuckled lightly again. "Most of the time, yes."

She rolled her amber eyes. "I can see that."

Continuing to laugh, he said to her, "Apparently, you're as stubborn as I am."

Stopping, she planted her hands on her hips and whirled to face him, shoulder length blond hair flying. "As stubborn? Try way more stubborn."

A slight chuckle came from Athrun. "Alright, more stubborn. Have it your way."

She shrugged one slender shoulder. "Of course." Continuing to pull him down the cobbled streets, she got him all the way to her house/mansion that she lived in.

Pulling him past security, she hauled him into the house, and called for a medical person. Quirking a brow, he smiled. "You don't carry a communicator?" Always a good idea to collect intel.

She shook her blonde-haired head vehemently. "Never. I hate having to check up with my parents all the time."

She never had a communicator on her. Good to know, Athrun thought. "And then there are the times that it would actually be useful to have one," he pointed out.

Curling her hands into fists, she snapped at him. "Well, so what? I wasn't hurt."

"You might have been though, that'd be bad, wouldn't it? Who knows if they'd let you out if that happened."

A small grin came to her lips. "Yeah. Then I'd escape."

Unintentionally he spoke his thoughts. "What would happen to Orb if you were kidnapped?" He felt like smacking himself. Of all the stupid things to come up with!

Fortunately, she took it the wrong way. "I can take care of myself, thanks very much!"

Smiling to cover his slip, he said, "You're a little touchy about the subject, yes?"

"I'm allowed to be!" she snapped, then cooled. "Sorry. I'm a little irritated about that."

A smirk was etched on his bloody lips. "I kind of got that sense from you."

A laugh came from her. "I bet."

He laughed with her, not thinking so much about kidnapping as speaking with her. She had an unique view on the world that he found fascinating. Not to mention she was beautiful, with her amber eyes paired with choppy blonde hair.

A nurse finally came, and before Athrun could do much more than blink had ripped up his shirt, inspecting his - perfectly fine - torso. Watching Cagalli was more fun though. Her eyes were fixed on a point that was below his face. Red stained her cheeks. Hey, it wasn't his fault that being in the army meant you had to have muscles. She caught him looking at her looking at him, and swirled around.

He examined her from behind, liking what he saw.

The nurse, evidently done with examining his body, turned her inspection to his face. She tutt-ed upon close examination of his nose. He winced when he saw it in a mirror - it looked like it had imploded all over his face with red stuff. It wasn't broken, he could tell that; it was just bruised. Blood surrounded the thing, and was smeared all over his face, giving him a grotesque mask. It was a wonder Cagalli had talked to him - he was surprised she hadn't run him to the hospital on first sight.

Then again, many things about Cagalli had been taking him by surprise. He didn't really want to kidnap her anymore. Mentally slapping himself, he frowned. He was a soldier of ZAFT, and that meant doing his duty. He would get her.

Moving around the Atha's entry, he walked towards Cagalli once the matronly nurse had finished washing his face, and smearing some thick black cream on his face. The illusion of a mask was complete. Cagalli giggled slightly behind her hand at his face.

"What's so funny?" he asked innocently, looking down at her. He was only inches away.

She breathed in, and answered, chuckling still. "You. You have goo all over your face."

A fast step brought her into his arms. He rubbed his face all over hers, smearing it with the black gunk. "Now you do too."

Smacking him, she pushed away, and laughed. "Hey!"

He shrugged, laughing. "You deserved it. Laughing at me!"

Scraping some from her face, she threw it at him. It caught on his already dirty shirt, and hung there like a snail. A mission idea leapt to his mind. "Want to go out later tomorrow?" It would be an opportunity to talk to her more, and discover her hobbies. That would make it easier to kidnap her.

She smiled, amber eyes lighting up. "I'd like that."

Before he left, he had to tease her once more. "At least then, you won't get mugged - I'll be with you."

A sarcastic tone came to her voice. "And you got out so well," she replied pointedly, staring at his bloody shirt, and bruised face.

He chuckled. "You may be right."

She retorted hotly. "I know I'm right." Absently, he noted that she was adorable when mad. Her eyes opened extra wide, and she breathed deeply, accentuating her figure. Definitely something to remember. He blinked. What did that have to do with the mission?

He opened the door. She planted herself in front of him. "I can't remember your name."

"Alex Dino, Cagalli." Smiling inside, he stepped around her.

She popped up in front of him again. "Why'd you remember my name?"

"I like your name, and I like you. What's not to remember?"

A blush rolled across her cheeks, and he walked around her, lest he spill something about the mission. That would just be the crowning glory.

He walked back to the shack, forgetting about the muck on his face. Thoughts of a blonde girl filled his head, some fantasies more insane than others. As such, he missed the look Yzak shot him as he laid down on the couch. Finally, Yzak could bear it no longer.

"Why the hell do you have crap on your face?"

The next morning, Athrun rose, yawned once, and looked about the room. The other three snored, filling the room with noise.

He walked to the back, and shoved a few ration bars and a few water bottles under the door. Miriallia probably wasn't awake yet. He tapped Nicol, who woke Dearka and Yzak with a few words, and smacks. Athrun chewed on a block of cardboard, and washed it down. In the bathroom, he washed off the dried black slime, and brushed his teeth. To his surprise, whatever that black stuff had been had cleared the bruise up completely, leaving no trace whatsoever. He should look into that stuff - everyone knew he needed it often enough.

Pulling on his work clothes, he waited for the other three. They dressed swiftly, not mistaking the look in Athrun's eyes.

After a few minutes, they walked out. Dearka called sarcastically into the house. "Be good now, honey - don't burn the house down."

Athrun could almost imagine her voice. 'I wish' or something like that. A smile came to his face the closer they got to the mansion now known as work.

They walked in, and checked with the manager, who eyeballed Athrun. "This is your friend you told me about, Nicolas?"

"Yes, sir." Nicol's subdued voice spoke.

Athrun repressed the urge to salute. That wouldn't do at all. "Alex Dino." He stuck out a hand to shake. The older man smiled at something, and shook his hand.

The chief of security, Kisaka, or something like that, apparently was happy with him. They walked into the ornate flowers, and started clipping and trimming stuff. Athrun froze when he saw Cagalli walking towards him, draped in a light green and brown sundress. He liked it - it ended just above her knees, and was strapless.

"I didn't know you worked here." Her voice was amused, with a bit of irritation laced in.

"First day," he replied, pulling a few more offending weeds.

"Oh. So, I was thinking that we'd go to this great kabob stand I know. How does that sound?"

He nodded, and added his plans in there. "I'd like to go to the beach as well." She mused that over, then smiled her acceptance. "I'll meet you by your front gate at seven, okay?" She nodded again, and waltzed away after waving goodbye. He watched her discretely.

Dearka passed by him. "You have a date with the Chief Representative's daughter?" His booming laughter rang out in the garden, causing a few birds to fly away. "Tell me how she is after."

Athrun hit Dearka. "I'm not going to sleep with her, you idiot."

Dearka laughed, ignoring the hit. "I thought that was what a date was for."

Athrun just rolled his eyes, ignoring the suggestive and lewd jokes Dearka kept on cracking. An old lady wandered by - the same one from before.

She wandered over to Dearka, and slapped his behind when he was pulling weeds. Dearka jumped upright, staring in shock at the frail ninety year old lady. He looked at Athrun, who was rolling in the dirt in laughter.

She smiled, exposing gums, and not much else. "Better be careful there sonny - fine young thing such as you."

Dearka coughed a bit, and squirmed in acute displeasure. The old lady grabbed his cheeks with her hands, bringing his face down to her stooped, hunched over level. She pointed to her cheek and said, "Now, now, give your Granny Em a kiss."

Awkwardly, Dearka pressed his lips to the old crone's withered cheek. She smiled, and patted his rear again, making him jump, again. Athrun choked, trying to contain his laughter.

For some reason, all the security guards were laughing too. Then again, it wasn't every day that an elderly lady assaulted a young man. Unless that was her normal way of operating.

The old hag wandered into the house before Dearka went back to working. Every couple of seconds, his blond head would whip up, scout the area, and go back down. He frenetically picked weeds, finishing early.

All the coordinators finished, and started their walk to the tiny thing they were calling home for a week. Once they got in, Yzak started harping on Dearka. 'I didn't know you had a Granny, Buster.' Or, 'You charmer you.', 'Didn't know you liked your women _that_ old, dude.'

Athrun just laughed with Nicol at Dearka's expense. Miriallia heard the story - her eyes got wide. She laughed too, only she had a tad of hysteria in hers.

Turning to the green-haired coordinator, Athrun snorted for a second, then sobered. Dearka was in the yard, pouting. Yzak followed him out, still snickering. He spoke. "I don't know what it is Nicol, why'd they choose _me_ for this assignment. I don't like hurting people."

Nicol's brown eyes showed understanding. "They know that you are the best commander of all of us, Justice."

Athrun slammed his hand onto the couch. "I don't want to do this anymore. I hate it!"

He felt Nicol's hand on his shoulder. "Justice, you know what? I don't want to either, but orders are orders. We are soldiers. We do our jobs."

A sigh was the only evidence that Athrun heard. "I met her, and that just makes it harder. She's a happy kid, Blitz, a happy kid. And I have to take her away from all she knows, for reasons that we don't know, just because I'm told to." He buried his head in his hands.

There was a silence from Nicol, then, "I understand, really I do. Why did they send mobile suit pilots to do an espionage groups job? Why us? We're only a little bit older than she is."

A harsh laugh from Athrun preceded his mocking answer. "Because we are elite soldiers of ZAFT."

Nicol sighed. Behind her locked door, Miriallia listened, eyes wide.

Athrun thought about Cagalli again. It was the easiest way to take his mind off the other topic. It gave him a perverse bit of pleasure knowing that when he kidnapped her, he'd be able to talk to her.

**(A/N: **Okay, well, there is Chapter 5. Hehe, date next chapter. Stay tuned, and R&R)


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